Corinne H. Rocca, PhD, MPH, is an epidemiologist who combines approaches from social epidemiology with those of demographers and clinicians interested in understanding sexual behavior, contraceptive use and unintended pregnancy. Broadly, her research examines how structural factors, such as access to reproductive health care and cultural norms, affect risk of unintended pregnancy among high-risk populations in the US and South Asia. In particular, her research has focused on expanding our understanding of pregnancy intentions, including what influences adolescents’ and women’s attitudes towards pregnancy and how intentions translate into behavior. She uses quantitative psychometric techniques, including item response theory, to improve the measurement of pregnancy intention, childbearing attitudes, as well as other latent variables important to understanding pregnancy risk.

Dr. Rocca joined Bixby in 2001 to direct a randomized trial evaluating pharmacy access to emergency contraception; data were provided to the FDA to inform their decision on over-the-counter access to emergency contraception. Collaborating on an NIH study in Bangalore, India, she co-authored scientific articles investigating contraception and the association of women’s social and economic resources with domestic violence. She recently completed research investigating unsafe abortion in Nepal and found a need to innovate care in medication abortion for women in remote areas. She is launching a new trial in Nepal evaluating access to medication abortion through pharmacies. Finally, working on the Turnaway Study, she is evaluating women’s long-term emotional responses after having an abortion or an unwanted birth in the US.

Dr. Rocca received her doctorate in Epidemiology at the University of California, Berkeley; an MPH in Population and Family Health from Columbia University; and a BA in Human Biology from Stanford University.